Left to the Past
by eyha
Summary: Link has just delivered the final blow in his battle against Ganondorf. As he departs the drowning Hyrule, Kings Daphnes contemplates the similarities between past and present...
1. Part One

Left to the Past

**Hi, this is my first story. Please feel free to review, even if it's to give criticism (at least that way I'll know someone's reading it -_-).**

**Nintendo owns the Legend of Zelda**

**"(text)" denotes someone's thoughts**

Part One

Link stood with one foot planted firmly on Ganondorf's chest, the other resting on his shoulder. There was an almost surprised look on both Link's and Ganondorf's faces, at how the green-clad child had somehow managing to evade the frenzied attack and defence that the King of Evil had set up. The Master Sword was now deeply buried in Ganondorf's forehead, but Link continued to push his weight down upon it, as if worried that his final blow was insufficient.

Ganondorf let out a weak moan, before painfully gasping out his last words, "heh heh... The wind... It is blowing..." the demented grin that remained plastered to his face almost gave the impression that he was glad to have been defeated, to have been released after so long. It could even be true.

Link leapt lightly off Ganondorf, leaving the Master Sword in place. He then watched in amazement as Ganondorf's body slowly turned to stone, rising up from the ground until his entire body assumed the form of a statue. Link continued to gaze at the petrified body of his foe, before closing his eyes and letting out a relieved sigh, putting an arm over one of the more serious wounds that he received over the long and difficult battle.

King Daphnes Nohanson Hyrule watched as Zelda rushed over to Link as he started to collapse, succumbing to his exhaustion and his wounds, with an anxious expression on her face. She caught and attempted to steady Link, struggling under his weight. He could see the care that they had for each other.

"(Just like the previous Hero and Princess,) he thought to himself, smiling internally, whilst maintaining the stern and regal expression on his face.

He slowly walked over to them. Zelda looked up to face him and managed to hold Link up long enough for him to see too.

The former king paused. What he was about to say was not going to be easy, and he knew the objections that they would have, but it was necessary in order to protect them and give them a future. He knew this, because he had made the mistake of not accepting it when the same opportunity was offered to him...

"My children... listen to me."

They were looking up to him curiously and excitedly. The innocence of their faces nearly made him smile, but he forced himself to keep his face straight.

"I have lived regretting the past. And I have faced those regrets. If only I could do things over again... Not a day of my life has gone by without my thoughts turning to my kingdom of old."

Not a day went by without him cursing himself for not doing what he should have been able to do. If he had succeeded, they would have been able to finish Ganondorf and protect Hyrule forever...

"I have lived bound to Hyrule," he stated. "(In more ways than they would know,)" he thought to himself. "In that sense, I was the same as Ganondorf."

"But you... I want you to live for the future. There may be nothing left for you... but despite that, you must look forward and walk a path of hope, trusting that it will sustain you when darkness comes."

They both nodded slightly. It was obvious to him that they did not truly understand what he was implying by his words, but now he was going to make his intentions obvious.

"Farewell... this is the only world that your ancestors were able to leave you. Please... forgive us."

Both Link and Zelda looked down, now saddened by the idea of leaving him behind. Suddenly, Zelda looked up, a hopeful expression on her face.

"W-Wait! You could... you could come with us! Yes, of course... we have a ship! We can find it. We WILL find it! The land that will be the next Hyrule."

He continued to look expressionlessly down on her.

"So..." she continued nervously, frowning at his lack of answer.

He smiled at her and closed his eyes, "Ah, but child... that land will not be Hyrule. "(That land is already gone.)"

"It will be YOUR land!" He finished, waiting for the inevitable.

The waters, held back from the platform by the Goddesses' magic, finally started to fall down. In seconds, the entire platform was submerged. Link and Zelda were bracing themselves for the impact of the crushing depth, but opened their eyes to find themselves encased in bubbles. Zelda was quickly carried away by the bubble towards the surface.

Daphnes watched as Link, his friend and companion for so long, attempted to struggle his way back down to the where he was standing. He reached out, but their fingers were unable to close the distance, before Link was carried away by his protective bubble, to be sent to the safety of his life above the waves. The former King of Hyrule smiled slightly, and exhaled, breathing the few seconds of life away from him. As he watched the bubbles spiral up towards where Link had departed to, he closed his eyes and smiled to himself again.

"I have scattered the seeds of the future..."

"(That boy... so much like I was once. Now, with him to protect Zelda... maybe I can finally rest... the world no longer has any need for me. Ganondorf has been defeated, and my granddaughter is safe. If only I had been able to do this myself: Hyrule would not have been destroyed...)"

He ignored the pain in his lungs as they cried out for air. It was no worse than much of the pain that he had experienced many times before in his life. He would not be alive today if he couldn't withstand pain like this. Instead, his thoughts drifted away with the bubbles, drifting back to the past: memories of Hyrule and its failed Hero...


	2. Part Two

**Ok, just for anyone who doesn't know, that was just the prologue. Now, onward with the main story! (By the way, I've got a few other stories that haven't been published yet that are in production, and I'm not sure what to upload first. Visit my profile to find out about them. I'll probably get a poll up eventually...)**

**Nintendo owns the Legend of Zelda**

**"(text)" denotes someone's thoughts**

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Part Two

_100 years ago..._

It had been a long and difficult fight, but Link, the Hero of Time, had finally managed to defeat Ganon. Princess Zelda had offered him the chance to go back to his childhood, and experience the years that he had lost as a result of being sealed by the Master Sword. He remembered the concerned expression on her elegant face as she reached out to touch his shoulder, carefully avoiding a large, but shallow, cut on his upper arm. She smiled hopefully, awaiting his answer.

To her surprise, his reply had been a simple, "no". He remembered how her hand had fallen off his shoulder as she pulled it back to her breast, her concern yielding to worry. He caught the hand with both of his, enveloping it. He looked directly into her eyes, but there was no anger in his own. He explained that he had learned from his travels that it wasn't a good idea to mess with time. There was too high a possibility of something going wrong, as he had seen. A single pebble kicked at the wrong time causes a landslide seven years later. He had been forced to meddle occasionally, in order to find some of the items he had desperately needed, but he had avoided it whenever possible. A large change like this could cause almost anything to happen, could destroy the flow of time itself. It was just too dangerous. There had been a lengthy pause, as they continued to stare at each other. Princess Zelda looked unconcerned at the potential dangers. She wanted to take the risk, in order to return what Link had lost.

As a result, he was then forced to admit his other reason for wanting to stay. He didn't want to tell her at first: it seemed wrong. She was the princess, he was just another commoner. But seeing her stand in front of him (he had off-handedly noticed that a strand of hair had come loose from her otherwise flawless hairstyle- which somehow made her seem so much less alien to him- and resisted the urge to brush it back), she felt more like just another normal person like him. She was looking up into his face, waiting for him to finish. He took a deep breath, before continuing.

"Zelda..." He remembered the slight look of surprise on her face as he said her name. It was the first time he had done so without calling her 'princess'. He was struck with worry for a few seconds; did that mean that he had been too informal? Was it impertinent to call her by her first name? Was he not important enough in her eyes to call her that? However, her face then changed into a smile, a small smile to be sure, but he could see the gratefulness in her expression. Emboldened, he continued.

"The other reason why I don't want to go back is because... I don't want to lose you. You were one of the only people to believe in me, one of the only people that cared about me once I left the forest. When I see you, so beautiful and noble, and yet so kind, so gentle, and so brave, I realise that I'll probably never meet anyone like you again. When I woke up, I wanted to find you again. I hadn't realised it at the time, but you were with me that whole time, even though Ganondorf was after you the whole time. Why did you take such a big risk for me?" he asked, with a hint of frustration in his voice. Why had she risked herself just for him? She would have been safe otherwise. Ganondorf would not have been able to capture her if she hadn't revealed herself to him.

She looked down for a few seconds, slightly hurt by his question. She then looked back into his eyes, with a defiant expression on her face, though her voice was uncertain, "I- I wanted you to be safe. I wanted to make sure that you weren't hurt."

"You shouldn't have..." he began, noticing how she seemed to suddenly become downcast as he did so, "but I'm glad you did," he finished. Her expression changed once again, her eyes filled with a mixture of confusion and happiness.

"The problem is that... I think I may have fallen in love with you," Zelda's mouth opened slightly in her surprise, but she quickly recovered and seemed ready to say something. Link silenced her by moving one of his hands to her face and gently closing her lips. He then continued. "I could argue that the reason why I want to stay is because of the people I've met, and how I don't want to lose their friendship, but in truth, it's simply because I love you and I couldn't bear to never be able to see you again."

To his surprise, she had in turn confessed her love for him. He had expected her to tell him that they had a duty to Hyrule, and needed to fix what had happened. However, instead she explained that ever since she had met him, she had been entranced by his bravery, and the lengths to which he was willing to go in order to protect others. He had been the freedom that she had yearned for, and wished that she could be with him, saving the world together, though she thought that she wouldn't be able to be anywhere near as brave as he was. When he had disappeared, she had felt so guilty. She had left him alone with Ganondorf, and she had thought that he could have been killed. Why had she put so much responsibility on him? It was clearly too much for one person. She had been so happy when he had reappeared, and mourned the fact that she was unable to reveal herself to him. But now they were together, and that was all she really cared about.

They had embraced, but only briefly, before the sages whisked them away to start the rebuilding of Hyrule. It had taken several years, but the people united behind the hopes of their new King and Queen and worked hard to restore the grandeur of the fallen kingdom to even greater prestige than ever before. Castle Town had been rebuilt, with the central Castle now even bigger than ever, encompassing all the way up to the Temple of Time. Link had returned the Master Sword back to its rightful resting place, and sealed it behind the new seal that the Sages had devised, down below in the basement, protected by an enchantment and puzzle that only a hero could break.

Hyrule was finally at peace. However, Link began to feel restless, and missed the thrill of the adventures that he had before, being able to roam wherever he felt was right, rather than where his schedule told him to go. Though he never showed it, the constant politeness and imperious nature he was expected to display was stifling him, and he didn't know how much longer he could take the political machinations, the endless flood of names and titles he was expected to memorise, the extremely short and infrequent periods in which he was able to see his friends (including Navi, who had returned to the forest now that their adventure was over). Even though they were married, Zelda still spent large amounts of the time away, tending to state affairs. He even resented the name that had been bestowed upon him by the populace as his 'royal' name (What kind of a name was Daphnes Nohanson Hyrule?), though gradually, he began to get used to it over the years.

So when he heard that pirates were raiding Hyrule from the South, he was quick to seize this as an opportunity to get out of the castle for a few weeks. He rallied together a party of soldiers in order to protect the people of Hyrule, and marched down to the far South, even beyond the Lost Woods and the small village of Ordona, with Zelda, much to his delight, deciding to accompany him. Upon arrival, he found that the pirates had been aggressive ever since they had heard about a large stash of treasure that had been buried near one of the villages, as the villagers had refused to let them get anywhere near, as they believed that the pirates would only harm them if allowed to go ashore.

With some difficulty (still being unaccustomed to using diplomacy as a way of solving problems), as well as the help of his wife, Link managed to persuade the villagers that the pirates meant no harm to them, and made the pirates swear to only take treasure from forgotten hoards such as this one, rather than robbing villages on the coast, with Zelda having explained that they would be a lot less likely to be despised if they treated the people with honour. In thanks for their help, Link and Zelda were made honorary pirates, with the promise that if they ever needed help, they could always return to them for aid. Another surprise also greeted them, with the news that Zelda was now pregnant.

Link and Zelda began the long, happy trek back to their home, only to discover that terrible events had taken place in their absence. It appeared that Ganondorf had been storing energy in the Dark Realm to which he had been banished, and had attacked the binding just as Zelda had been furthest away, when the seal had been at its weakest. Another few weeks later and the binding would have gained more strength, and would have became too strong even for Ganondorf to break through. They had all been destroyed because of that simple bit of misfortune. The other sages had attempted to hold the seal, but Ganondorf had broken through, slaughtering them where they had gathered.

Link and Zelda returned to find Castle Town under heavy siege, with Ganondorf unleashing his army upon the shining walls, with many a brave soldier dying by the minute just to hold the walls. Hyrule was once again in chaos, and Link had realised what he had to do, and had once again drawn the Master Sword and confronted Ganondorf. He still remembered that day now.

Ganondorf stood out in the open, sword in hand, casually deflecting any arrow that came within ten metres of him. As he saw Link doggedly approaching with the Master Sword in hand, he laughed the same powerful sinister laugh that still haunted Link's dreams to this day. As Link stepped into the clearing, the Gerudo king casually stamped his foot, causing a ring of flames shoot up, nearly engulfing him. If Zelda hadn't pulled him into the circle, Ganondorf would have killed him before the fight had even begun, and now they had been cut off from any outside help too.

Fortunately for them, Ganondorf had been severely weakened by the effort of breaking out, and with the help of Zelda's light arrows, and after a gruelling duel, Link was eventually able to duck under one of Ganondorf's powerful swings at his head, then lunged forward through Ganondorf's guard and stabbed down deeply into his stomach. He remembered the relief he had felt, believing that Hyrule was safe from Ganondorf forever.

This was sadly not to be. To his horror, Ganondorf had laughed, and actually pulled the blade from his gut, the wound made by the sword healing over as he tossed it aside, the flow of blood quickly slowing down to a trickle, then stopping altogether.

"The Blade of Evil's bane, eh?" he chuckled, "seems a little weak, now that the Sages are all dead." He then laughed, long and loud, and advanced on the pair with grim satisfaction in his eyes.

It was true. With the fall of the Sages, the enchantment that the Master Sword possessed had faded, and now it was unable to destroy Ganondorf, and with the loss of its power, there now was no way to defeat him. Hyrule could not be saved. Despair, the one emotion that the Hero of Time could and should never feel, coursed through his body.

Link and Zelda did the only thing they were able to do, and ran, away from the battlefield, away from the destruction and away from the unstoppable King of Evil. He knew it was the right action, as they had to protect the Triforce, but the thought of his failure galled him and would cause him to scowl and clench his fists in anger, even now, so many years later. They had fled deep into Hyrule, moving constantly with the few soldiers that had been able to follow them after the siege of Castle Town. Ganondorf pursued them, intent on finally recovering the Triforce that he had sought for so long. Several months passed, and their child was born to them. Now they were stuck for what to do next, as they knew that being constantly on the run was no place for a child. They had to find somewhere safe to hide the baby. It was then, just when they were most in need of help, that they came across the pirates that they had helped before. Once again, they extended their offer of aid, and this time Link and Zelda gladly accepted.

However, Link was unable to cope with the thought of abandoning Hyrule now that it was most in need of help. Just one week after the pirates had set off, he slipped overboard, after leaving a letter explaining to Zelda of his plans, and begging her not to follow him. He then sailed off with one of the pirates' sailboats, a small and vibrantly coloured boat with a stern dragon-faced figurehead, hoping to find a way to defeat Ganondorf.


	3. Part Three

**Ok, only two parts of the story after this to go now. The climax is nearly upon us! Gasp! But it's not here yet. Instead, here we have part three. Enjoy!**

**Nintendo owns the Legend of Zelda**

"**(text)" denotes someone's thoughts**

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Part Three

Link travelled for many years, always seeking for a method that would grant just the slightest hope of defeating Ganondorf. As he travelled, he saw how far Hyrule had fallen under Ganondorf's second reign; it was now even worse than it had been after his seven year long sleep. Kakariko Village and Lon Lon Ranch had been razed to the ground, and the population lived in fear of Ganondorf's monsters, who wantonly travelled through the country, bullying and destroying anything they took the slightest offence at.

The sight of seeing so many people suffering so greatly sickened him, but he forced himself to continue on. There was little he could do to help them. He had little money himself, so was unable to provide them with food and other necessities, and if he tried to drive away the monsters, it would only bring disaster to the people in the area, as they would be blamed for killing them. The only way to help them would be to defeat Ganondorf himself.

Finally, he found a promising piece of information in an ancient tome that offered a slight chance of defeating Ganondorf. The Master Sword was powered by the Sages, and though they had all been murdered, it was possible to pass their powers on to another person, allowing them to assume the position. This was in fact what had happened when Link had been awakening the new Sages on his adventure, after the old ones had died.

He set off to find the next Sages, unsure of how he would awaken them, now that they were no longer being sealed inside the Temples. He looked all over Hyrule, but was unable to find even a hint of their whereabouts. He began to despair slightly, but then remembered the Gossip Stones, and their vast stockpiles of useful hints and rumours. It was not long before he found a stone that told of the place where the Sages had made their stand against Ganondorf.

Once he arrived at this location, he was met with a sorry sight. This was where the darkness had started spreading through Hyrule, and this could easily be seen through the landscape. The earth was dry and parched, devoid of all life, only covered by the occasional shambling, rotted figures of ReDead as they mindlessly searched for life to destroy, while the sky was covered with a large black funnel cloud, contrasted against a blood red sky. In the centre of this devastation stood a small stone temple, almost collapsed from damage caused from years of neglect. Despite the several ReDead that were slowly chasing him, Link still took several seconds to force himself to enter, knowing what he would find inside.

It was every bit as bad as he had suspected. Though many years had passed, and the bodies had long since decomposed to nothing but skeletons, Link could still easily imagine the scene that had passed in his absence. However, he was snapped out of the painful thoughts by the appearance of his friends' spirits, as they arrived to pass their messages on from beyond the grave.

He was asked to search for new people to become the new Sages, and to teach them the new songs that were used in their initiation. He searched far and wide for these new people to take over the Sages' roles, and eventually succeeded in finding their replacements. Finally he had a way of defeating Ganondorf. Once again he headed towards Hyrule Castle, ready for his final showdown with his old enemy.

But first, he needed to send a message to his family. Deep within the abandoned library where he had found the information about the Master Sword, he had also found a small book about enchantment and animating objects, which had been written by a very experienced magician. He had initially taken it out of curiosity, but now he was very glad that he had it. He found the old sail boat that he had initially left the pirate ship on, and attached one of the Gossip Stones inside it. Using the book, he enchanted the boat with a spell that would allow him to control it from a distance, and using another Gossip Stone which he carried with him, he would be able to see, speak and listen through the boat. As he travelled, he directed the boat to search for the pirate ship.

Eventually, he came across it off the East Coast of Hyrule, drifting slowly during the night. Much to his delight, that night it appears Zelda was unable to sleep, as he saw her leaning over the railings staring out to sea. The years had been kinder to her than they had been to him. Though she no longer looked as young as when Link had last seen her, with several strands of grey in her blonde hair, she was still a figure of remarkable beauty. She looked down and saw the boat slowly approaching the ship. He directed the sail boat to raise its dragon head-shaped figurehead and called out to her through the Gossip Stone.

"Zelda!"

She had started in surprise at hearing his voice seemingly emanate from an empty boat, but after a moment, her eyes teared over in joy at hearing him once again. She leaned over the railings and called back.

"Link! What is going on? How are you in that boat?" she asked.

"It's kind of complicated. I'm controlling this from Hyrule. I've finally found a way to kill Ganondorf."

"Why did you leave so suddenly?" she asked, sadness and worry evident on her face, "Why did you leave me behind?"

"It was too dangerous Zelda." He attempted to explain, "I've had a lot of close calls, and we'd be more noticeable if we travelled together. I just sent this to tell you I love you. This is going to be very dangerous and I'm not sure if I'm going to win."

"Then why are you going alone? You need help, Link!"

"No, it's too dangerous! What if Ganondorf captures both of us? Then he'll have the whole Triforce!"

"But Link!"

"No Zelda, you can't... I'm sorry."

Link reluctantly put away the Gossip Stone, and set off, towards Castle Town, where Ganondorf would be lurking.


	4. Part Four

**Here's the fourth chapter, the climax of the story. Sadly, that also means that it's nearly over already... Oh well, there's plenty of other things, to read out there. On that note, I put up a poll on my profile recently with stories I'm going to write next, so if you have the time, feel free to answer it! On a final note, please review if you liked the story or have something to say about it! You'd be surprised how much it helps motivate me.  
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**Nintendo owns the Legend of Zelda**

"**(text)" denotes someone's thoughts**

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Part Four

Much to his horror, when he finally arrived back in Castle Town, he found that Ganondorf was already waiting for him, sword in hand, with his entire vast army behind him. It had been pouring with rain for his entire journey across Hyrule, as it was raining now, and at the back of his mind, he wondered if it might flood Hyrule at this rate. As he approached the horde and the imposing figure of the King of Evil, he quickly banished the thought from his mind. A little flood wouldn't make a difference to the fates of the Hylians if he failed now. Of course, he laughed at the irony of that now, seeing the water pouring down to wash away Hyrule forever.

"After all this time, the great Hero returns to save the day," the King of Evil mocked, "only to find that once again, he arrived back too late. You'll never be able to kill me now." Without further taunts, his army surged forward with untamed force, ready to destroy the Hero of Time once and for all.

Link drew his sword and attempted to fight them off, but no longer was he the young man that he had been on his earlier travels. The years that had passed had weakened his muscles and slowed his reactions, reducing him from a fearsome warrior to a middle-aged, though still impressive-looking, man. Still, he held them off for several minutes, destroying enemy after enemy that dared to stand against him. But he was quickly tiring and was nearly overrun.

Suddenly, just as all hope seemed lost, several massive fireballs and a volley of arrows impacted into the ground around him, instantly killing a ring of monsters around him. Before he could react to this sudden development, he heard a familiar voice call his name, though the voice seemed... different to the last time he remembered it.

A clear area had started to form nearby. Inside that ring were the shadowy forms of soldiers, as they swept along the lines of monsters around their circle, destroying those that came too close. Perched on the ruined walls of the nearby buildings were several men dressed in shadowy black clothing, firing arrows at those that attempted to rally against the group. As the smoke from the explosion cleared, the faces of the men became visible. Link was tempted to rub his eyes to check if his eyes were deceived. They were composed of the men that had accompanied Link and Zelda as they fled Hyrule, as well as many of the pirates that they had allied with. There was Alonzo, stabbing and slashing with his sabre with skill and speed that belied his size, Fenza, who was knocking Moblins out with a flail, Drudge smashing in heads with his great club, Thako calling out instructions and occasionally knifing any monster that came too close, Miko nervously fending off a Stalfos with a spear, and Kenzuko slashing with a cutlass. However, what really drew his eye was the woman standing in the centre of the circle.

Princess Zelda's blue eyes were flashing as she fired arrow after arrow into the enemies surrounding them, occasionally resorting to casting a fireball to burn a large swath in the mass. As she killed yet another monster, she glanced up and their eyes met.

"Link!" She called, attempting to cut her way through the interposing creatures to reach him.

"Zelda!" He called back, the relief and joy at seeing her once again tempered by the fear he felt at the danger she had placed herself in to protect him.

"Link! We have to go! Leave killing Ganondorf to someone else!" She pleaded, "just come with me! We can escape together!"

As she spoke, the last monster separating them fell, and she ran into his embrace, though he was forced to quickly release her to shield her from another attacker.

"Zelda, if we fail now, there won't be another chance! Ganondorf will just hunt down the sages and kill them again!" He told her, frantically attacking a Iron Knuckle that nearly cleaved both of them in two.

"No Link, listen to me! I received a vision from the Goddesses! This rain, it's to seal away Ganondorf!" She yelled.

"How's rain supposed to seal Ganondorf?" Link asked.

"The Triforce is bound to Hyrule! The Goddesses want to flood Hyrule to seal the Triforce's power beneath the waves! And we've got to get out of here before they do it!"

"What about everyone else?"

"The Goddesses are guiding them to the mountains. They'll be safe there." She explained.

"I guess we have to go then." If Ganondorf was really going to lose his power, then Link would be able to defeat him later, if he survived the flood.

Suddenly, Link realised that he could hear a steady roaring sound, slowly rising over the noise of the battle. He turned, prepared to confront what he believed to be an even bigger monster than what he had fought already, but he didn't see anything at first, but then he saw a line approaching from a long distance, sweeping quickly across the length of Hyrule field. At first he rubbed his eyes in disbelief. Surely one that big was impossible. But he was quickly convinced when he saw it engulf enormous trees and buildings which didn't even come one quarter of the way up its height. It was a wave, an absolutely enormous wave, and it was coming their way.

All thoughts of fighting instantly left him, as well as the monsters around him, as they turned and fled in panic. He dimly heard Zelda's voice over the din, ordering the pirates to return to their ship, and then they both were running, pushing against the mass retreating into the city.

Just as they reached the edge of the crowd, they found Ganondorf blocking their path.

"This is your doing, isn't it?" he snarled, tugging two scimitars from their scabbards, "I don't know what you did, but I am going to stop it right now, and take the Triforce pieces while I'm at it!"

Link realised that there would be no way for them to get past Ganondorf, and the wave would soon be closing in on where they were standing. They would have to run back to the Castle, and hope that Ganondorf drowns with them.

Zelda quickly fired a light arrow, which Ganondorf effortlessly blocked. However, in the time it took him to do so, Link and Zelda had already turned around and fled back into the crowd.

They ran as fast as they could, ever fearful of Ganondorf finding them in the press of bodies, as they heard his screams of rage as he continuously failed to find them. The monsters were in a state of panic, some fleeing in every direction in a futile attempt to escape their doom, some staring at the wave with slack jaws and hopeless expressions, some standing defiantly against the wave in an idiotic attempt to resist its strength (their rather pitiful intelligences not alerting them to the fact that you can't fight against water), while others were busy finding shelter and taking cover.

As they had passed the gates, the crowds thinned, and they were now fleeing through streets filled with screams, some from panicking monsters, and others from the remaining ReDead that still patrolled the ruined city, devouring the unfortunate monsters that passed them. They could hear Ganondorf's cries once again, and the hoof beats on the cobblestones of the horse he had jumped onto, and realised that he was catching up fast. They were so focused on the sounds of his pursuit, that they failed to realise that they had ran into a trap...

Several monsters, some of the few that still kept their heads and followed Ganondorf, were crouched on several of the buildings of the alley they were running through, and as they approached, jumped down onto the street in front of them.

Link once again drew his sword. He had fought monsters like these before; he could quickly beat them and they could continue running. Castle Town was even bigger than it used to be; Ganondorf would not be able to find them before the flood hit, and then they could use Farore's Wind to get to the pirate ship. He cut through the monsters as quickly as possible. He then turned, and found that he had already been too late. Ganondorf clattered around the corner, a mad laugh leaving his mouth as he saw them. Zelda was standing in his path as he bore down on them, and as he passed, he slashed down with his shining steel scimitar.

"No!" Link cried out in desperation, already charging back to them.

Zelda gasped, as the sword slid out of her flesh with a familiar, sick, _squelching _sound, blood dripping off the tip as Ganondorf readied it for the onrushing Hero of Time, continuing his mad gallop down the cobblestones.

With the anger flooding through his body lending him strength, Link caught the blade on the rim of his shield, effortlessly flicking it aside out of his nemesis' hands. Ganondorf was already leaning back, dodging the sweep of the Master Sword, so Link instead raised his right hand, palm in Ganondorf's face, and activated Din's Fire at point-blank range, concentrated into that tiny space.

The spell failed to kill the King of Thieves, but the force of the magical flames was enough to fling him out of the saddle and smash him head first through the wall opposite. Link quickly swept up Zelda and climbed into the saddle, cantering off just as Ganondorf managed to extradite himself from the shattered brickwork.

Link allowed the horse to take whatever path it wanted, uncaring about the direction as long as it was as fast as possible away from Ganondorf. Dread filled his body as he gazed down on the wound. It was very deep, and the blood was freely weeping over Zelda's body, already dying the entire dress red. Her breathing was fast and shallow, and her eyes were already gazing up at him with a resigned expression. Link had seen that expression too many times before, and now Zelda was wearing it.

"(No, no, no!)" He shouted in his head. This wasn't happening. He wouldn't **let** it happen.

He helplessly searched his bag for something, anything, that could save her, despite knowing that there was nothing he had that could help. A fairy, a potion, heck, even a bottle of milk! But nothing. There was nothing he could do.

"Link..." Zelda murmured weakly.

"No Zelda! Just hold on! I'll get help somewhere! There's got to be someone who can heal you!"

"Link, it's too late. I'm nearly gone already. There's just one thing I have to tell you first."

"What is it?"

In response, Zelda struggled to pull herself up. Link gently wrapped an arm around her and lifted her onto his lap. She leaned against his chest and looked up into his desolate blue eyes.

"Link, I love you more than anything. More than my parents, more than my kingdom. Please, stay safe for me."

A weak coughing fit shook her body, cutting off her speech for a few seconds. He pulled her more tightly against himself until she recovered.

"Also, there's something I need to give you. I know it will be safe in your hands.

She raised her right hand, and Link's eyes widened as he saw the Triforce symbol on the back begin to glow gold. Painfully slowly, the golden triangle, that was the Triforce of Wisdom, started to rise, centimetre after glowing centimetre, out of her hand. As it left, Zelda grew weaker and weaker, finally falling back into his arms.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, as her eyes closed for the last time.

Link was silent for several seconds, as if unable to believe that she was gone, before the tears started to well up in his eyes and run down his face. He cried freely, not even bothering to urge the horse on, and they came to a halt. What did it matter anymore? Zelda, the love of his life, and what got him up each morning still ready to fight on, was gone.

"(Snap out of it!)" An urgent voice in his head shouted, and for a moment, Link thought it sounded a lot like Zelda scolding him, "(there's still your daughter to think about. And what of all the people who need your help?)"

"(Right!)" Link frowned, and his face hardened as he stood up, "(there is still much that I need to do.)" Then he happened to glance down, and the surprise that he felt momentarily overwhelming the grief he was feeling.

The Triforce had not finished leaving Zelda's body before she died. As a result, when her soul departed, the process had stopped, breaking the Triforce into two parts, both of which were now lying on the floor in front of him. He could feel the power of the Triforce even now, emanating from the two shards, and they were glowing brightly, responding to each other in an attempt to be reunited.

Link had frowned as he contemplated the problem facing him. If the pieces stayed together, then Ganondorf would be sure to quickly notice them and would stop at nothing to retrieve them. They had to be separated. He looked back at Zelda's body, and a lump formed in his throat. Their daughter, she would be without her parents. He refused to return to the ship himself. It would put her in too much of risk if Ganondorf detected his presence. But she deserved to at least get to say goodbye to her mother...

Tapping into his magic, he had prepared Farore's Wind, which by this point, he had improved to the point of being able to teleport objects to any location he can visualise. Taking one of the Triforce shards and two of the Gossip stones that he had picked up, he gently placed them in Zelda's closed hand. He had hoped that he would be able to explain everything to his daughter later. He released the magic and her body disappeared, on its way to the pirate ship.

He then straightened up; now all that was left was to make sure Ganondorf didn't leave the city before the flood hit...

His thoughts had been quickly interrupted as Ganondorf charged round the corner on a new horse, it appeared he had commandeered, now missing his evil smile, instead roaring in rage, with his scimitar raised high above his head. Evidently he had not been amused by Link attacking him then running away.

Link had quickly sprung into the saddle of his horse and fled, just about escaping in time to dodge Ganondorf's first swing.

Once again he led Ganondorf on a mad dash through the streets of Castle Town, cutting through crowds of monsters as the King of Evil launched one magical assault after another, unable to close the distance to attack with his sword. However, despite Link's success in maintaining the gap between them, he knew that this would not last. The monsters were starting to realise that Ganondorf was their best hope of surviving, and as a result were now starting to attack Link as they passed, slowly hemming him in, forcing him to move towards Hyrule Castle. The wave had nearly arrived at Castle Town, already engulfing the burnt ruins of Lon Lon Ranch. Link's time was nearly up.

"(I guess there's only one choice left now,)" Link thought, quickly dropping out of the saddle as he arrived in the courtyard of the palace, right in front of the front door, "(back to the castle it is then.)"

With Ganondorf still relentlessly pursuing him on foot, Link ran through the castle's rooms, still lavishly decorated despite the years that had passed since the royal family's exile. He had originally planned to run up the staircases, heading to the highest towers, and hopefully occupying Ganondorf for that little bit longer. However, he was forced to abandon that plan on viewing the main staircase. It was packed with monsters, all running up or down, fighting or otherwise panicking. There was no way he'd get away from Ganondorf that way. Instead he ran down the adjoining staircase, heading towards the basement, the new resting place of the Master Sword that he had built.

As he descended the final set of stairs, finally cornered despite his efforts, he knew that there was no escape for him now. If Ganondorf took him alive, it would only be a matter of time before he managed to extract the Triforce of Courage from him, and probably find the half of the Triforce of Wisdom he possessed. With so much power, it probably would not take him long to find the final piece of the Triforce and achieve ultimate power. He highly doubted that even the flood could stop him. If Link died on the other hand, the Triforce would move on to its next holder, wouldn't it?

With no hesitation at all, just as his adversary had been about to grab him, he stabbed himself through the heart with the Master Sword. A powerful blast of energy had burst out from him, flinging Ganondorf across the vast room, smashing him into the staircase where they had entered. However, a few seconds later, after collapsing to the ground he realised that the blow had failed to kill him. The Triforce of Courage had protected him. However, the force of the blow had shattered the sacred relic. As Link saw the shards of the Triforce scatter over the floor, he knew exactly what to do. He pulled together what little magical power he had left, and used Farore's Wind on the golden shards. They quickly vanished in a flash of light. He looked up just in time to see Ganondorf storm across the room towards, hefting him effortlessly off his feet with one hand.

"What. Did. You. Do?" snarled Ganondorf, spitting each syllable into Link's face. Link could do nothing more than smirk slightly.

"The Triforce is gone. You've lost. I may not be able to kill you, but with the Triforce of Power sealed, as it indeed will be in a few minutes, I highly doubt you will be able to look for it."

Link could see Ganondorf growling, as he raised his sword to strike, but his snarl of anger was drowned out by an incredibly powerful roar. The wave had arrived.

Link managed, despite Ganondorf nearly throttling him, to smile widely and weakly gasp, "oh look, the wave's arrived." Ganondorf glared at him, and his smirk grew even more, "wonder what you're going to do now?" he asked conversationally.

The Gerudo king roared with anger and threw Link against the wall. As Link struggled into a seated position, Ganondorf took a deep breath and smirked himself, though it appeared a little forced. "At least I can escape this place," Ganondorf said, "which is more than I can say for you. Rest here with the knowledge that as you drown, trapped here in your basement, that I am still alive and will find the Triforce." He then laughed, then turned and vanished in the swirling dark cloud that spewed from his hand. As he left, Link saw that the entrance had been sealed. He sat down and awaited the inevitable, comforted with the knowledge that at least Ganondorf would no longer be protected by the Triforce, and he could be killed at last.

Minutes passed. Still, no water flooded in through the entrance, and eventually the roaring of the waves subsided, and still the chamber remained dry. Link realised that he would no longer have to worry about drowning in the crushing depths.

"(The whole of Hyrule must be completely submerged by now,)" he realised with a pang of loss for his country. All those years of history and majesty, brought to an end by the actions of one man.

Of course, he was not completely out of danger yet. He had seen enough dead bodies, still clawing desperately at the doors of the sealed rooms of the various dungeons he had been in, to know exactly what happens to people trapped inside a room with no air vents. He would quickly die of asphyxiation if he didn't find a way to survive the lack of air. He closed his eyes to think.

After several more minutes of intense concentration, he realised that there was one way to prevent suffocation. The stasis crystal. It was a rarely used piece of magic that could be used to survive almost any harsh environment. While in it, the person entrapped needed no food or water, no longer breathed, therefore needing no air, and their ageing process stopped. The only downside was that it left the person immobilized in a coma until an outside event disturbed the person inside. If he used it, here in a sealed chamber deep inside drowned Hyrule, would he ever be freed? Rumours say that a person inside a status crystal remains conscious of their surroundings. How would it feel to be trapped forever in one place, unable to move or do anything?

"(Or could I?)" Link wondered, pulling out the gossip stone from his pouch. If the crystal kept him conscious, then he'd be able to use the stone and see through the boat's eyes. He'd be able to keep an eye on the world above and see what Ganondorf does. He might even be able to find a hero to finish Ganondorf, once and for all.

Quickly, he began the ritual for the stasis crystal, single mindedly focusing on the possibilities of the gossip stone as he did so. Within two minutes, the ritual was completed, and he held out the gossip stone in front of him, activating it just as the magical barriers of the crystal began to form around him.

"(I really hope that the rumours are true, or there will be no way of stopping Ganondorf,)" he thought to himself as the chamber began to fade away.


	5. Part Five

**Well, it looks like we've finally reached the end of this story (though finally seems a bit of an odd word to use- it's not like this has been up long). Anyway, just the epilogue of sorts, and this story will be complete. Of course, this is only the beginning (mwah hah hah), and I will be writing quite a lot more in the months to come. Please feel free to visit my profile to see what will be coming up, and maybe vote on what you want to see next.**

**Nintendo owns the Legend of Zelda**

"**(text)" denotes someone's thoughts**

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Part Five

From there, the events were simple. He had wondered the Great Sea for several years, avoiding the Hylians (as he knew that they would be tempted to try to capture the boat to see how it worked) and watching constantly for signs of Ganondorf's plans or a new hero that could defeat him, occasionally finding the pirate ship (still sailing fine despite the years that had passed) and checking to see how his descendants were doing. His efforts had seemed fruitless for many years. He could not find any evidence of Ganondorf, and the people seemed far too peaceful to even raise a sword. For a few years, he had a lot of hope in a young man on Outset Island named Orca, who was very skilled with the blade, but the man was far too focused on purely his sword and other martial interests. Without the interest in knowledge and history that his brother possessed, Link knew that he would fail in the tasks the were required of a hero.

He had almost despaired when he found that Ganondorf was kidnapping young girls. Maybe he had found out the location of the Triforce of Wisdom and was now looking for his descendant (he knew that another girl had been born in the family a few years ago). With this fear in mind, he quickly travelled to the Forbidden Fortress, Ganondorf's base of operations, just in time to see the Helmaroc King toss a boy out across the sea. He had headed towards this mysterious boy, struck as he approached by a disturbing sense of familiarity.

"(He... he... looks just like me,)" Link realised. The child had blond hair, wearing a disturbingly familiar green hat and tunic. As he approached he saw a flash of blue eyes as the boy's eyes closed in unconsciousness. He wasn't exactly the same, thank the Goddesses, but it was undeniable that anyone who had seen both of them as children would effortlessly be able to see the similarity.

"(He can't be the next hero! He's just a boy!)" Link told himself angrily, determined not to subject this child to any further danger, "(All boys on Outset Island wear that! It's just a coincidence!)"

A coincidence? Link knew by now that there was no such thing as a coincidence for him. Everything that had happened to him happened for a reason, and this was one of them too. The Goddesses had given him the hero that he had prayed for so long. He himself had only been about that age when he started his quest. He knew that the child, simply by the act of reaching such a high point in the Forbidden Fortress- a minor miracle in itself- was perfectly capable of doing this task. And now it was up to him to make sure that he did not waste this opportunity.

And he did not. They had travelled the whole of the Great Sea together, and defeated many formidable enemies. Now, after so long, the child had triumphed over all the adversity that had stood in his way, and now Ganondorf would finally be sealed away forever. Hyrule may be gone, but now there was hope for its people. Now they would finally be safe.

As his vision slowly started to fade away to black, King Daphnes, otherwise known as Link, the Hero of Time, smiled to himself. After so many years of suffering and fear, he was finally free.

"(Zelda... I'm coming...)" he thought as he closed his eyes for the final time.

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Credit to Emoaj66 for the Youtube video of the ending of Wind Waker that I used for the beginning of the story.**


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